SAFD searching for person of interest in VIA fake pipe bomb incident

Published 7:53 am, Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Investigators say this man is a person of interest associated with a fake pipe bomb left on a VIA bus on Nov. 5.

Investigators say this man is a person of interest associated with a fake pipe bomb left on a VIA bus on Nov. 5.

Photo: San Antonio Fire Department

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Investigators say this man is a person of interest associated with a fake pipe bomb left on a VIA bus on Nov. 5.

Investigators say this man is a person of interest associated with a fake pipe bomb left on a VIA bus on Nov. 5.

Photo: San Antonio Fire Department

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Investigators say this man is a person of interest associated with a fake pipe bomb left on a VIA bus on Nov. 5.

Investigators say this man is a person of interest associated with a fake pipe bomb left on a VIA bus on Nov. 5.

Photo: San Antonio Fire Department

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Investigators say this man is a person of interest associated with a fake pipe bomb left on a VIA bus on Nov. 5.

Investigators say this man is a person of interest associated with a fake pipe bomb left on a VIA bus on Nov. 5.

Photo: Michael E. Quintanilla (SAFD), San Antonio Fire Department

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Law enforcement officers respond to a bomb threat on a VIA bus on St. Mary's St. across from the Greyhound bus station in San Antonio, Texas on Thursday, November 5, 2015.

Law enforcement officers respond to a bomb threat on a VIA bus on St. Mary's St. across from the Greyhound bus station in San Antonio, Texas on Thursday, November 5, 2015.

Photo: Carolyn Van Houten

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Law enforcement officers respond to a bomb threat on a VIA bus on St. Mary's St. across from the Greyhound bus station in San Antonio, Texas on Thursday, November 5, 2015.

Law enforcement officers respond to a bomb threat on a VIA bus on St. Mary's St. across from the Greyhound bus station in San Antonio, Texas on Thursday, November 5, 2015.

Photo: Carolyn Van Houten

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San Antonio Police Department investigators wait for results as the San Antonio Fire Department investigates a suspicious device planted in a VIA bus on Thursday, November 5, 2015, at Soledad and Pecan streets.

San Antonio Police Department investigators wait for results as the San Antonio Fire Department investigates a suspicious device planted in a VIA bus on Thursday, November 5, 2015, at Soledad and Pecan streets.

Photo: Jacob Beltran/San Antonio Express-News

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San Antonio Police Department investigators wait for results as the San Antonio Fire Department investigates a suspicious device planted in a VIA bus on Thursday, November 5, 2015, at Soledad and Pecan streets.

San Antonio Police Department investigators wait for results as the San Antonio Fire Department investigates a suspicious device planted in a VIA bus on Thursday, November 5, 2015, at Soledad and Pecan streets.

Photo: Jacob Beltran/San Antonio Express-News

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The San Antonio Police Department investigates a suspicious package on a VIA bus in downtown San Antonio near East Pecan and North St. Mary's Street.

The San Antonio Police Department investigates a suspicious package on a VIA bus in downtown San Antonio near East Pecan and North St. Mary's Street.

Photo: Carolyn Van Houten

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The San Antonio Police Department investigates a suspicious package on a VIA bus in downtown San Antonio near East Pecan and North St. Mary's Street.

The San Antonio Police Department investigates a suspicious package on a VIA bus in downtown San Antonio near East Pecan and North St. Mary's Street.

Photo: Carolyn Van Houten

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San Antonio Police Department investigators wait for results as the San Antonio Fire Department investigates a suspicious device planted in a VIA bus on Thursday, November 5, 2015, at Soledad and Pecan streets.

San Antonio Police Department investigators wait for results as the San Antonio Fire Department investigates a suspicious device planted in a VIA bus on Thursday, November 5, 2015, at Soledad and Pecan streets.

Photo: Jacob Beltran/San Antonio Express-News

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San Antonio Police Department investigators wait for results as the San Antonio Fire Department investigates a suspicious device planted in a VIA bus on Thursday, November 5, 2015, at Soledad and Pecan streets.

San Antonio Police Department investigators wait for results as the San Antonio Fire Department investigates a suspicious device planted in a VIA bus on Thursday, November 5, 2015, at Soledad and Pecan streets.

Photo: Jacob Beltran/San Antonio Express-News

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Law enforcement officers respond to a bomb threat on a VIA bus on St. Mary's St. across from the Greyhound bus station in San Antonio, Texas on Thursday, November 5, 2015.

Law enforcement officers respond to a bomb threat on a VIA bus on St. Mary's St. across from the Greyhound bus station in San Antonio, Texas on Thursday, November 5, 2015.

Photo: Carolyn Van Houten

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SAFD searching for person of interest in VIA fake pipe bomb incident

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San Antonio Fire Department arson investigators have identified a person of interest associated with a hoax pipe bomb that was left on a VIA bus downtown last week.

A passenger noticed the device around 3 p.m. Nov. 5 and reported it to the driver, who immediately evacuated all passengers at Pecan and Soledad streets and called VIA Transit Police.

The San Antonio Police Department bomb squad was also called out to the scene, and eventually destroyed the device while it was still on the bus.

SAPD Chief William McManus said that the device resembled a pipe bomb. However, investigators were able to determine that the object was fake after it was destroyed.